“I think she played a very high standard,” Halep said after the loss. “I had pain at my knee. For me, in the second set, it was difficult to move anymore, but she deserved to win. She was aggressive, and she hit very strong, the balls.”

Not a lot of stars with Stuttgart looming next week…Tough starts for (8) Falconi vs. Cirstea, and (6) Rogers vs. the Spanish veteran Dominguez Lino…Wildcards went to Maria Paulina Perez Garcia, Maria Herazo Gonzalez, and Yuliana Lizarazo…Caroline Garcia beat Jelena Jankovic in last year’s final…Returning former champs in the field are Dominguez Lino (2011,’06) and Duque Marino (2010).